Two cases of aortic valve transcateter replacement in Honduras, 2019

Abstract

Background: Cardiac valvulopathies occur in 1 of 100,000 inhabitants in Central America. Aortic stenosis represents 25% of these pathologies. The main cause is rheumatic fever and in high-income countries, congenital anomalies. Bicuspid aortic valve disease is a rare anomaly, present in 0.5% of the total population. Traditionally in Honduras, corrections of these anomalies had been made with vascular surgery. Description of the clinical cases: The first two cases of transcateter replacement or endovascular therapy (transcatheter aortic valve replacement, TAVR) performed in Honduras are presented, they were realized on 2019, in a private healthcare center in Tegucigalpa. The first case on a bivalve aorta, with the support of an In Snare system, due to the difficult approach, with EuroScore II <4%. The second case of an aortic stenosis secondary to rheumatic fever. Both procedures were performed without immediate or late complications. Echocardiography reported resolution of pressure gradients and reduction of maximum aortic transvalvular velocity (Vmax Ao). Conclusion: Being this a first-world therapy, indicated for patients with high and low surgical risk, it opens the opportunity for our population to receive an effective, safe therapy with immediate results.